The continuation of professional football and other professional sports has many blatantly obvious benefits. For instance, if millions of people are sat at home watching sport on TV, they are not out and about elsewhere seeking entertainment.

Calling a halt to professional sport that is being played in controlled environments would achieve next to nothing in terms of stopping the spread of the virus, but it would cause significant damage to the economy, it would cost tens of thousands of people their jobs and it would negatively affect the morale and the mental wellbeing of millions of people.